Thursday, 12 September 2013

Four months ago I started a website called QuickBitcoin which allows users to buy bitcoin in the uk. Using the UK's faster payments system we are able to reduce transaction times down to an average of only 10 minutes.

Running the site has not come without it's share of problems. Unfortunately accepting paypal or other reversible payments system simply doesn't work as scammers can pose as customers and initiate chargebacks as soon as they have the Bitcoins. Currently Paypal always sides with the buyers as their dispute staff have not been trained to inspect the Blockchain for evidence of a transaction.

This means that the only forms of payment we are able to accept are those which are much harder to reverse, therefore removing our risk, but also removing all the security layers from our customers. How are customers expected to blindly send us a bank transfer without knowing if or when they will receive their coins?

Building this trust is a slow process. We are as open as possible about who we are and how we operate, but often receive questions about how they can trust us. I guess it all comes down to reputation. Getting that first buyer in took a long time, and now there is a steady flow of customers, but most are still a little skeptical.

You can't really blame people for being skeptical what with all the bad press that Bitcoin has had. I for one am convinced that Bitcoins or another similar currency have a large role to play in our future.